First Dial-a-Ride closes but another on the way
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• City of Oxford Motor Services Ltd has been granted a short-period licence to operate a Dial-a-Ride service at Carterton, Oxfordshire, near the RAF base at Brize Norton.
It will work on a hail-stop system and there is only one objector — Carterton Coaches.
The granting of the application comes at a time when the company has announced the withdrawal of its Dial-a-Ride service at Abingdon, claimed to be the first in the country.
Administrative officer Mr Albert Taylor commented: "We have closed this one because of lack of support. It started about a year ago".
One of the main reasons for this was that the company ran a minibus service over more or less the same route. Dial-a-Ride operated on a Tuesday and Sunday with a minibus service on the remaining five days. Oxford Motors has now introduced a minibus on Tuesday, and withdrawn the Sunday service. The route is also served by three other buses.
Mr Taylor added: "People seem to prefer the minibus set-up. Although there was a difference in fare — Dial-a-Ride costs 3p more — passengers seemed happier with the minibus.
At Carterton — where a population of 18,000 is served only by one half-hour service at present — Oxford Motors thinks there will be more need for a Dial-a-Ride service.
"One of the lessons to be learned here," said Mr Taylor, "is that you must establish a need before setting up a Dial-a-Ride service."